Tag: Q1 1911
Lorimer’s Shadow: Senator Broderick Walks Free After Bizarre Twenty-Minute Trial
On a chilly March 30th, 1911, in the hushed halls of Springfield’s circuit court, a guilty verdict hung heavy in the air. But when it came time to render justice, a jury of local citizens took a mere twenty minutes to acquit State Senator John Broderick of Chicago of bribing former Senator D.W. Holstlaw of…
Oscar Blease, Murder, South Carolina 1920
In a stunning turn of events, Governor Blease of South Carolina has commuted the sentence of James Davis, a Laurens County negro sentenced to death, to life imprisonment. The decision came after the Supreme Court recently affirmed the sentence of death imposed by the Laurens County Court and ordered a new execution date to be…
Mayor Oaynor Accused of Corruption, New York NY, 1911
On March 23, 1911, Magistrate Corrigan delivered a scathing indictment of Mayor Oaynor and his administration in New York City. The usually stoic Magistrate let his frustration boil over, labeling the city a ‘town in which the most forms of vice and violence were on the increase.’ Corrigan’s blistering address left the city magistrates in…
Irish Nationalists Embroiled in Brawl, Bisbee AZ, 1911
The streets of Bisbee, Arizona, witnessed a peculiar display of patriotism on March 17, 1911, as the city’s Irish community celebrated Saint Patrick’s Day. While the festivities were in full swing, a group of Irish Nationalists took it upon themselves to organize a raucous dance at a Lowell hall, leaving little doubt about their enthusiasm…
The Mysterious Stranger of Perrysburg: A True Story of a Secret Service Agent?
It was a crisp autumn day in 1859 when a peculiar stranger trudged along the turnpike in Perrysburg, Ohio. The man was short and stout, with a round, red face covered in a stubby growth of blonde whiskers. He wore a broad, flat blue cloth cap and a long, brown linen duster coat, which was…
New York Opera Scores Heist, Grand Larceny, New York 1911
March 9, 1911, was a day of high drama in the exclusive world of New York’s high society. A daring heist had shaken the very foundations of the city’s elite. Two precious opera scores, the prized possessions of the city’s most cultured and affluent residents, had vanished into thin air. The theft sent shockwaves through…
Otto, Herman Arrested for Laborer’s Near-Fatal Fall, Calumet MI, 1911
A harrowing close call unfolded at the Masonic Temple in Calumet, Michigan, when 30-year-old laborer Herman Otto narrowly escaped death after plummeting down an elevator shaft on March 7, 1911. The incident occurred around 10:30 a.m. as Otto, a worker at the temple, was making his way to the third story. His astonishing escape from…
Spies, Scoundrels, and Showgirls: Tales from the Underbelly of the American West
In a sordid tale of deceit and betrayal, a Seattle socialite’s quest to find her father has taken a dark turn. Miss Adrienne Laforet of Paris, seeking answers about her father’s disappearance, has reached out to authorities. The last known whereabouts of her father were in Sitka, Alaska, in 1894. Since then, he vanished into…
John Bambergs, Counterfeiting, New York 1923
It’s a story of crime and deception that has shaken the very foundations of Bamberg’s small-town charm. In a daring heist, thieves made off with a printing press, valued at $10,000 or more, from the Herald building on Main Street. The press, equipped with a state-of-the-art linotype machine, cylinder press, and folder, was the heart…
HAT HEIST: San Antonio’s Fashion District Foiled Again
San Antonio, TX – A brazen daylight robbery shook the Emporium Millinery company at 208 West Commerce street on Monday afternoon. A naress, likely a servant, made off with a $10 hat, but the real prize was a stunning white ostrich plume worth $25. This was no ordinary theft – the thief was caught by…
